Enjoyed your trip account very much. My wife and I are just beginning our trailer camping, and have a new '18 16DBS--with the "off-road" package.

A question for you is-- do you get any benefit from having off-road tires on a trailer, other than possibly getting a little more height from them?

Hi There nolichuckyjake.

Welcome to getting spoiled by trailer camping. My wife and I are happily adjusting to our 13QBB after 8 years with our off road modded popup. As you will deduct from my threads on this forum, we are an adventurous pair, who go to great lengths to get off the beaten path, seeking grand vistas and solitude. This almost always requires 4 wheel drive and ground clearance. So, more height is always welcome, and sometimes necessitated. Off road tires tend to be taller, but more importantly, they have robust sidewall construction that allows for extreme airing down (EX: 10 psi for sand) and provides superior rock puncture resistance.

If you stick to maintained roads, any decent tire will do - Maxxis seems to be the favorite on this forum. Just remember that even an off road tire will be susceptible to tread punctures by rocks if you are aired up for highway travel (40-60psi) and moving at a decent clip down dirt roads. Ask me how I know.

Thanks for the reply. Yes, airing down is at least a possibility in our future, though I don't have any experience off-roading---we do want to get out into the deserts of the SW. Towing with a 2500 series Ram Tradesman 4WD, which looks lifted, but they tell me it's stock. Good clearance, anyway. Running Goodrich ATs on it, and currently some Chinese mud-tires that came on the trailer.

Have been considering Goodrich Endurance STs, but they only come in a 225 X 75 X 15 (trailer takes 15"), whereas current Chinese tires are 235, and I don't want to lose any height. On the other hand, my feeling is that the straighter the tread, the better the mileage, and it's a long way from N.C. to Utah.

What do you think about the relative strength of sidewalls in a compromise like the Goodyear Wrangler?All tires in the sizes we're using on trailers are going to be C-rated, I believe.

Thanks for the reply. Yes, airing down is at least a possibility in our future, though I don't have any experience off-roading---we do want to get out into the deserts of the SW. Towing with a 2500 series Ram Tradesman 4WD, which looks lifted, but they tell me it's stock. Good clearance, anyway. Running Goodrich ATs on it, and currently some Chinese mud-tires that came on the trailer.

Have been considering Goodrich Endurance STs, but they only come in a 225 X 75 X 15 (trailer takes 15"), whereas current Chinese tires are 235, and I don't want to lose any height. On the other hand, my feeling is that the straighter the tread, the better the mileage, and it's a long way from N.C. to Utah.

What do you think about the relative strength of sidewalls in a compromise like the Goodyear Wrangler?All tires in the sizes we're using on trailers are going to be C-rated, I believe.

I am not a fan of Goodyear Wranglers (I had 2 blowouts on two different sets). We have BFG KOs on our CL 13QBB, and have gone through several sets on our Jeep. There's a lot to like about the KOs, but on the Jeep they do tend to wear quickly (in fairness, I do regularly run them as low as 15psi on 4x4 trails around Sedona, and don't always air back up around town).

I've heard really good things about Falken Wild Peaks lately from other experienced off roaders (compared with the KOs they are equally capable off road, really good teadwear, better on snow and ice, quieter and cheaper. I'm going to try them next.

... but they have almost the same tread pattern as the BFG KOs. They make them in 15" too. The wheel wells on our 13 are pretty dinky and our tires are a moderate 26" diameter overall. 28" max is what I could fit without rubbing unless I go into mod mode. In which case I'd like to accommodate some 31x10.5x15"s for the CL. But hacking into my virgin wheel wells is off the table for now.

Let me know if you head out west. I could make some recommendations for some must see places.

[/quote]Regarding tire sizing, the middle "75" number correlates to tire height (aspect ratio). The higher this number, the more sidewall height will be, and therefore more true lift. The first number "225" id related to the width of the tread (section width). [/quote]

Yeah, metric tire sizing is complicated, and I always have to refer to a chart to remember how it works.As I understand it, both the first and second numbers are relative to each other, so "235" is not a clean dimension, but relative to the "75".

If this is true, there is .6" difference in overall height between a 235 X 75 and a 225 X 75, and that is what my comment was referencing.

Thanks for the info on other tire options. Gonna run these Chinese tires around the southeast this fall, and replace them before I head cross-country, probably in the spring. I'll be asking for recommendations for boondocking spots then.

The first place I see potential problems with clearance on my DBS 16 is the rear jacks, which look like they are just waiting to ground out in a deep wash. Might need to become 'removable' for some trips.

Regarding tire sizing, the middle "75" number correlates to tire height (aspect ratio). The higher this number, the more sidewall height will be, and therefore more true lift. The first number "225" id related to the width of the tread (section width). [/quote]

Yeah, metric tire sizing is complicated, and I always have to refer to a chart to remember how it works.As I understand it, both the first and second numbers are relative to each other, so "235" is not a clean dimension, but relative to the "75".

If this is true, there is .6" difference in overall height between a 235 X 75 and a 225 X 75, and that is what my comment was referencing.

Thanks for the info on other tire options. Gonna run these Chinese tires around the southeast this fall, and replace them before I head cross-country, probably in the spring. I'll be asking for recommendations for boondocking spots then.

The first place I see potential problems with clearance on my DBS 16 is the rear jacks, which look like they are just waiting to ground out in a deep wash. Might need to become 'removable' for some trips.[/quote]

Yes, the middle number is ratio, of tread width / sidewall height. Tire Rack shows the actual tire height for each size (under specs). You will notice that there is a slight height deviation between different tires of the same "size".

In metric tire sizing, the first number (section width) is the width of the tire, in millimeters. This is measured at the widest point of the tire when properly mounted and inflated on a properly sized rim. (Good luck reproducing that measurement!)

The second number is the aspect ratio. Section width times aspect ratio (as a decimal value) yields the sidewall height, in millimeters.

Thanks for the great clarification on metric tire sizes. Always interesting to see the difference in actual tire dimensions between two different brands of identically sized tires when I look at them in Tire Rack's excellent 'actual dimensions' sizing matrix.